From our table to yours: Cooking a turkey

By Jaime Solis|November 26, 2020

Eva Solis, my mother, begins her preparations for Thanksgiving dinner. It is a multistep process for the turkey’s preparation, as my mother walks us through her process of preparing the turkey’s stuffing and seasoning. (Jaime Solis/ The Union)
My mother picks some oregano from her garden in our front lawn. She uses a medley of herbs, including oregano and rosemary grown from her garden to season the turkey and stuffing. (Jaime Solis/ The Union)
My mother squeezes oranges as she prepares the basting seasoning for the turkey. Her recipe for the turkey seasoning includes:
garlic, orange juice, lemon juice, soy sauce, olive oil, salt, pepper, seasoned salt, oregano, basil, rosemary, and chicken flavored boullion. This year, she decided to experiment by also including some tiragon. (Jaime Solis/ The Union)
Eva Solis tastes what she has prepared so far for the turkey’s seasoning. Everything is “to taste” for my mother and rarely are exact portions for ingredients used. (Jaime Solis/ The Union)
After chopping the ingredients for the stuffing, my mother gives everything a light cook prior to stuffing it into the turkey. Her medley for the stuffing includes chopped garlic, 1 large or 2 small chopped onions, a bundle of celery, and a box of croutons for stuffing, all seasoned with a pinch of chicken flavoured boullion and sauteed in butter. (Jaime Solis/ The Union)
After lightly cooking the stuffing, she lets it col slightly before stuffing the turkey. In addition to the stuffing prepared, my mother places some whole garlic and rosemary sprigs into the turkey prior to the stuffing to help give the turkey flavor during the cook. (Jaime Solis/ The Union)
After stuffing the turkey, my mother pours and rubs her prepared seasoning mixture through out the turkey’s surface. After this, the turkey will be left in the oven for about 4 hours after it has been preheated to 450 degrees Farenheit. (Jaime Solis/ The Union)
The turkey is checked on an hourly basis and is basted with the juices and seasoning collecting from the turkey in the tray until it is fully cooked. (Jaime Solis/ The Union)
After about four hours, my mother has pulled out and plated the turkey, ready to carve into it once everyone is seated at the table. (Jaime Solis/ The Union)